The Insider's Guide to Business and IT Agility
By Adam Powers, CTO, Lancope , 10/19/2007
Print this article
Email this article
Talk Back!
Write to Editor
With regulatory compliance high on the corporate agenda, standards such as PCI, SOX, HIPPA, etc., require that data be handled securely. Not only do networks need to be secured, but they also must demonstrate security via comprehensive reporting.
Arguably, legislature and governance are constantly playing catch up with the increasingly threatened online world. New standards are an important and positive development, but they often fall short of recommending specific technologies that help maintain a secure digital infrastructure.
Traditional security products have long concentrated on protecting the network perimeter. Although some organizations use firewall technology on their internal networks, it is unfortunately far more common to encounter a lack of security at the network core. Implementing endpoint security is one approach to this gap in defense, but this method can be unwieldy in large networks. Users require different applications so it is unlikely that a single “one size fits all” desktop configuration will be realistic. Multiple desktop configurations and user profiles are the norm and require multiple endpoint security policies.
Before the widespread use of PCs and the Internet, company networks typically ran in isolation using a plethora of proprietary protocols and hardware. This provided security by obscurity. Hackers and virus writers had to learn about different vulnerabilities for each new target. Their target surface area was limited to the system they were currently focused on. Now, we live in a world where the PC dominates the enterprise and the Internet is an essential part of business life. However, this uniformity of technology has leveled the playing field for hackers, virus writers and other vagabonds of the information world.
Some of the best known security applications (e.g. anti-virus) have depended on signature engines to identify threats. Signature engines compare production data to a list of known patterns. If the signature engine identifies a match, then it alerts or takes some kind of mitigative action. Signature-based threat identification is very effective for known threats but is limited in identifying the unknown. This exposes a fundamental weakness in many signature engines. The workaround is to continually update the list of signatures. But, there is a noticeable and potentially costly gap, in terms of downtime and extensive infection, while anti-virus struggles to create a suitable signature to identify new threats. Many viruses and worms are easily disguised so that anti-virus engines cannot detect them until the next signature update.
1
ROUNDTABLE: Stretch Your Budget with smart SOA Governance-A Look at Successful Case Studies
ROUNDTABLE: Open Source Market Update
Insurance: Explore how SOA & BPM are driving down expenses and improving ROI
Insurance Industry Update: Why Standards Are Essential 
How ACORD Can Be Used As A Best Practice For Data Integration
Identity Networking: Where Security and Compliance Meet
Get Smart About Database Security
SQL Injection Rears Its Ugly Head Again
ebizQ is very interested in what you have to say. To contribute an article, an opinion, or to become a blogger, please contact Peter Schooff.
You need Adobe Flash Player 9 to view this widget.
June 3, 2009
One of the most compelling trends in the enterprise business technology space over the past year has been the emergence of cloud computing. In ebizQ’s upcoming Qcamp virtual un-conference, leading industry experts and practitioners will explore the role of service-oriented architecture (SOA) and business process management (BPM) in supporting cloud-computing initiatives. Additionally, the new skills that developers and IT managers need for successful cloud development will be discussed.Register
Date: Aug 26, 2009
Time: 12:00 PM
ET- (16:00 GMT)
Date: Sep 30, 2009
Time: 12:00 PM
ET- (16:00 GMT)
Date:Aug 26, 2009
Time:12:00 PM
ET- (16:00 GMT)
Date:Sep 30, 2009
Time:12:00 PM
ET- (16:00 GMT)
Is it possible for business users to design their own applications? Are Web 2.0 methods and mashups ready for the rigors of enterprise-scale...
Download Now
In part two of Joe McKendrick's recent podcast with Miko Matsumura, chief strategist for Software AG, they talk about how SOA and IT systems need to change and grow and adapt with the organization around it.
Listen Now
Phil Wainewright interviews David Vap, VP of products at RightNow Technologies, and finds out how sharing best practices can help businesses understand how best to engage with online communities.
Listen Now
Scott Hebner, Vice President of Marketing and Strategy for IBM Rational, discusses a topic on the top of every company's mind today: getting the most from IT investments.
Listen Now
In BI, this tough economy and the increasing role of Web 2.0 and MDM are certainly topics on people's minds today. WiseAnalytics' Lyndsay Wise addresses each of them in this informative podcast.
Listen Now
Deepak Singh, President and CTO of Adeptia, joins ebizQ's Dennis Byron in a podcast that gets its hand around the trend of industry-specific BPM.
Listen Now
From Dennis Byron: For BPM to fit at the top of the stack, it can't merely support workflow or integration. It needs to integrate the BI aspects of the stack, too. Learn More
In the insurance industry, companies have accepted that systems, strategies and data all developed in silos are making it difficult for them to grow and adjust to today’s market demands. The obstacles imposed by siloed approaches are painfully obvious to companies as they try to gain a better understanding of their customers and meet the growing constraints imposed by compliance and regulatory requirements. Leveraging industry standards with full data integration is one was to tackle this challenge. Learn More
From Dennis Byron: Is it better to choose one strain of BPM over another? The answer is unique to your organization. Learn More
Can decision management really deliver costs savings, agility and happy customers on a consistent basis? Learn More
From Dennis Byron: BPM products optimized for case management might be the products that bridge the extremes in my view of the BPM spectrum. Learn More
Integrating BPM and CEP gives you intelligent business processes that can react to rapidly changing business conditions with continuous visibility. Learn More
Insurers need to think about creating "true linkage," which means linking business strategy to process to IT investments and thereby setting the foundation for true change. Learn More
To be effective, business intelligence technology must work behind the scenes to deliver relevant information when, where, and how it's needed. Learn More
A lot of people are talking about Enterprise 2.0 as being the business application of Web 2.0 technology. However, there's still some debate on exactly what this technology entails, how it applies to today's business models, and which components bring true value. Some use the term Enterprise 2.0 exclusively to describe the use of social networking technologies in the enterprise, while others use it to describe a web economy platform, or the technological framework behind such a platform. Still others say that Enterprise 2.0 is all of these things. Learn More
Smart event processing can help your company run smarter and faster. This comprehensive guide helps you research the basics of complex event processing (CEP) and learn how to get started on the right foot with your CEP project using EDA, RFID, SOA, SCADA and other relevant technologies. Learn More
To Michael: To select what has to be improved (e.g. automated), a...
Hi Johan,
thank you for such prompt response.
I...
Phil,
It appears that Google is looking at the world...
I believe work has been done in this area privately for some time....
I wonder if BPM has become more popular because many solutions...
We are looking for a FileNET admin/developer in Houston, TX. The...
As we see more companies consider the cloud we should be...
Scott,
I agree that process management is good way for...
|
|
|
|
